Ryan MacGrath doesn’t do anything half-assed.
The night he released his EP, In My Own Company, he
transformed the Seahorse into an opera house—heavy curtains hugged
the stage, lanterns shone over mini-mirror balls hung like hot-air
balloons and little white lights twinkled behind textured
backdrops.
The magical surroundings were mere accents, as he pulled out all the
stops—an ensemble of nearly a dozen musicians clad in all black, with
pink floral broaches pinned to their chests. But it was the Harmony
Barbershop Quartet that nearly stole the show.
“I found them on Kijiji,” says MacGrath, over herbal tea. “They are
incredible. It was the first time they’ve ever backed anyone. It
certainly was the first time I’ve ever had a barbershop quartet back me
up.
“Putting this CD release show together almost felt like a
wedding—it was my wedding, in a way. I see why brides get so
stressed.”
Instead of sending out invitations, MacGrath spent four weeks
embossing 200 copies of In My Own Company by hand. He even had
small bottles of his own fragrance available for purchase at the show.
“I like to produce a show that’s more exciting for the audience.
Perhaps a touch indulgent, over the top and theatrical,” he says.
At 30 years old, the Guysborough County-native is no stranger to the
spotlight. In recent years he’s kicked around town as Ryan MacGrath and
thewoodenhouse. A couple of lineup and name changes later the project
settled on The Missing City Starlight.
Throughout it all, MacGrath was honing his craft and gathering up
confidence to cultivate the more orchestral pop he’s harvested in his
solo material. This past June he arrived at Don MacKay’s Spaces Between
Studios on North Street with skeletal versions of In My Own
Company. The recording process was a voyage in itself.
“We would consciously look for descriptive terms where we thought
the song should go from a production and engineering standpoint,” says
MacKay, co-producer, sound engineer and multi-instrumental session
musician. “We both had the skills to be able to find what it was that
we were after.
“From our conversations and our prior musical experiences, we both
have a dedication for songs, poetry and imagery, and sound. We have a
deep love for creation, learning and exploration. This makes for
fabulous linguistic and musical conversations.”
Drawing on the theatrical, MacGrath and MacKay created their own
narrative to orchestrate their creative ideas. When MacGrath wanted the
opening track, “Bell Boy,” to sound like a buoy floating in the water,
MacKay took that image and built on it. “Cinderella” aptly grew from
the original Walt Disney connotation, as MacKay improvised a
Disney-feel with a shovel and bucket of dirt for a sharp bass drum.
It’s hard not to create parallels with Rufus Wainwright’s cabaret
style and Hawksley Workman’s robust vocal range, but In the Dead of
Winter Festival co-organizer and songwriter Amelia Curran nailed it at
MacGrath’s CD release. “He sounds like a young Roy Orbison,” she says.
Perhaps, with more jazz flourishes, heavy-handed romanticism and
dramatics akin to Parisian love stories.
“People ask me to come up with my own term for my music,” says
MacGrath, who is playing Thursday night at the festival. “It’s like old
parlour music. Imagine a group of old ladies and gentlemen dressed up.
There are vases with big flowers. Someone is playing old-world music in
the parlour.”
MacGrath indulges in his imagination; he’s boldly romantic and
highly idealistic. His sexuality comes secondary. “I don’t sensor
myself in my lyrics. I’ve been out for 10 years. I’m really
comfortable. I hope the songs are strong enough to translate to
anyone,” he says. “Sure, I’m a guy singing about another guy, but I
hope that desensitizes. I want my music to transcend. I’m not RuPaul or
a club boy.”
Ryan MacGrath (8pm) w/Andrea Romolo (7pm), Alexandra
Ribera (9pm) and Heather Kelday (10pm) at In the Dead of Winter,
Thursday, January 29 at Eyelevel Gallery, 2063 Gottingen, $10, inthedeadofwinter.com.
This article appears in Jan 29 – Feb 4, 2009.